The Hawaiian gazette., 1887-11-22

ClsirioA q tie Chisf JRsiics JUDD and
M. JHStics McC ULLI.
This is a bill in Equity for an ae-
count and an Injunction, the plain
tiff claiming that he has copyrighted
a certain book called the "Hawaiian
Almanac and Annual which copy
right the defendants have mfringed
by their publishing book called the
a. Honolulu Almanac and Directory"
The plaintiff introduced at the
trial in preof of his claim for copy
right,
LIST. The certificate of the Min
lister of Interior of the registry Of the
title as required by the Statute, the
certificate bearing date November
IS, 1879.
The Statute isas follows, Compiled
Laws, p. %:
"No person shall be entitled to the
benefit of this Act, unless he shall
first deposit copy of his map, chart,
or book, in case the same shall have
been printed heretofore, with the
Minister OF the Interior, for preser-
walton; and in other cases unless he
shall deposit copy of the title of
such map, chart or book, with the
slid Minister, who shall cause the
same TO be recorded in a book kept
for that purpose, and shall give or
cause 10 be given to the applicant:
certificate under seal, of the title of
the work deposited and the claim
to copyright, lchich certificate, the
author or proprietor shall Immediately
cause 10 be published ia one or more
newspapers published IN this King
dom for the space Of ttro months, and
the said applicant shall pay for the
said certificate IRE dollars
There was introduced in evidence
& file of the ''Pacific Commercial
Advertiser" a newspaper published
weekly in Honolulu on Saturdays,
which contained q publication of the
said certificate in its various issues
eonsecutively beginning with Satur-
day, November %, 1879, immedi-
ately following the date of the eerti-
icate which was November %, We'd
nesday, and ending with the 18th
January, 1880.
The Court (Mr. Justice Preston)
held that such publication was in
sufficient under the Statute as not
being .'for the space of two months"
and ordered the bill dismissed.
The plaintiff appealed from this
order. The next day the plaintiff
fled a motion for reopening the said
cause on the ground of newly dis
covered evidence, viz: file of the
Rdtc0iidl Gazette, newspaper pub
lished weekly, in Honolulu on We'd
nesdays. This newspaper contained
a publication of the PLAINTIFFS certi-
fcate in its issue of December Srd,
which was the first Wednesday after
the certificate was granted, and
thereafter in every issue of the paper
to and including the 18th January,
1850, /. G., in nine weekly issues of
the paper.
The Court ruled that this publiea-
ton was not compliance of the |
Statute and declined to reopen the |
case, from which order the plaintiff
appealed.
BY THE COURT:-In an old case,
1S0S, Nichols VS.. Ruggles 3 Day |
Conn. I45) it was held that the /
provisions Of the Act of Congress
requiring the author or proprietor TO
publish the title of his book in a
newspaper and to transmit Il copy of |
the work itself to the Secretary of
State are merely directory and CON
stitute no part Of the essential requf- /
sites for securing the copyright. In
this case there was no evidence that
the required publication had been
made or that a copy of the book had
been deposited in the office OF the
Secretary of State, but the Court
held that if the plaintiff had actual
knowledge that the copyright had
been secured, he could not recover
for printing a book which was an
infringement of the copyright as the
contract was illegal.
But in 1884, the Supreme Court of
the United States decided the case
of Wheaton vs.. Peters Is Peters 223l.
Here the plaintiff claimed copyright /
in some twelve volumes Of Reports
Of the Z. 5. Supreme Court, which /.
was denied by the defendant.
The opinion Of the Court delivered I
by Mr. Justice Mclean reviewed 4
the English cases and held that in +
the United States an author has no /
exclusive property in a publisher
ercept l1tder same Act Of CoHqress.
and further that under the Act Of
May 81, 1870, an author obtains no
such exclusive right, unless he com
plies with the requirements of the
third and fourth Sections Of the Act.
by giving public notice in the news
papers. and depositing a copy of the